PayPal Takes A Stance: Cancels Charlotte Expansion Plans

PayPal has joined in on the fight against North Carolina’s law that strikes down existing LGBT nondiscrimination statutes by taking a stance of its own: canceling its plans to bring its new global operations center to Charlotte.

This move, which could also have a chilling effect on the area’s economy, would take away the 400 jobs that would otherwise have been brought to the city. In response to the passage of the law, PayPal CEO Dan Schulman authored a blog post about the company’s decision to revoke its plans.

“The new law perpetuates discrimination and it violates the values and principles that are at the core of PayPal’s mission and culture. As a result, PayPal will not move forward with our planned expansion into Charlotte,” he wrote. “These principles of fairness, inclusion and equality are at the heart of everything we seek to achieve and stand for as a company. And they compel us to take action to oppose discrimination.”

Schulman’s post goes on to express regret that PayPal cannot have the chance to be part of the Charlotte community, but said the company is standing firm against the state’s decision to allow discrimination of any type — which, he said, impacts the equal rights laws that his company strongly abides by.

“While we will seek an alternative location for our operations center, we remain committed to working with the LGBT community in North Carolina to overturn this discriminatory legislation, alongside all those who are committed to equality,” he wrote. “We will stand firm in our commitment to equality and inclusion and our conviction that we can make a difference by living and acting on our values. It’s the right thing to do for our employees, our customers, and our communities.”

PayPal joins other major companies that have taken a stance against this law, including Microsoft, Lowe’s, Bank of America and American Airlines — just to name a few. Late last week, Bank of America, which is headquartered in Charlotte, tweeted the following: “We are joining HRC, EqualityNC and more than 80 other companies calling for the repeal of #HB2.”

Across the tech community, major leaders have also spoken against North Carolina’s law, including Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter’s Jack Dorsey, Apple’s Tim Cook, Google’s Sundar Pichai, Tumblr’s David Karp, and Airbnb’s Brian Chesky. There has also been discussions about federal funding being cut for the state as a result of the law.